The Pretzel Path: Adam Shapiro on Creativity and Entrepreneurship

North Node.

I love that story because it's sort of a. It's a combination of two tracks that were going on in my life as an actor.I was really trying to figure out, and it seems cliche, but it's like, who. Who I am.

Yeah.

You know, like, what is it that I bring to. To acting? And. And I, I grew up with a nickname, Shappy. Right. And that's where Shappy comes from. Shapiro.And I got it when I was really little at camp and I was super homesick and. And my camp counselors brought me into their bunk and they're like, listen, Adam, you're crying every day. You're super sad. We get it.You miss your parents, you missed your home. But you're here for another three weeks. So starting tomorrow morning, we're gonna start calling you Shappy. And Shappy runs this place.Shappy owns this camp. He's friends with the boys, he can talk to the girls, he plays sports. He's doing all that. No crying, no homesickness.And when you're homesick and you're feeling it and you want to be Adam, you come over to us and in our, in our counselor's cabin and you can, you can cry on our shoulder.But tomorrow morning, Sappy shows up at breakfast and they gave me this, you know, at the time I didn't realize, but they gave me this like, alter ego, this like.

Yeah.

Superpower where I could almost play a role of just a. Not a three dimensional, sort of dynamic human, but just like a one dimensional.

Yes.

Positive, fun, funny, likable, lovable dude. You know, that's who Sappy was.

Hi, I'm Paige Nolan. Welcome to I'll Meet yout There. A place where heart centered conversations are everything. Living what matters is the truest thing.And sharing the journey is the best. Hi everyone and welcome back. My guest today is really funny. He's full of life and he has great stories.His name is Adam Shapiro and I'm delighted that he decided to meet us here. Adam is a husband, a father to two children, an actor and an entrepreneur. You've definitely seen Adam on your tv.He's been cast in over a hundred commercials. Most recently, you've probably seen him in the popular shows Never have I Ever and or the Bear.Adam is the co founder of the acclaimed Los Angeles theater company I Am a.And he is the very proud owner of the hugely successful business called Shappy Pretzels, which is a Los Angeles based bakery inspired by his Philadelphia roots. And it is known for the most delicious Soft Pretzels in the world.I attended a small business event at Google a couple months ago, and Adam was on a panel with his wife, Katie Lowes, who is also an actor and founder of I Am a theater company. Adam was just so open and honest about launching Shappy Pretzels, and I loved listening to him, so I invited him here to share his story.Shappy Pretzels was born out of the unusual circumstances of COVID and the strange year that was 2020. And that's where we start our conversation.Adam describes the singular experience he and Katie had during that time and the gratitude he felt as a father being able to spend spend so much time at home with his firstborn and how that led to the magic that is baked into every one of Shappy Pretzels.Adam talks about how the business grew very unexpectedly and how he managed the various challenges and juggled acting and fatherhood and his growing family.He talks about the realization he had around authenticity and how his whole life changed when he learned how to bring more of his true self to the various roles he plays, not just on TV and in film, but in his real life.We talk about the importance of honoring one's experience and skill set and how we often sell ourselves short of what we've accomplished when we're looking to try new things. We talk about mentorship, and Adam tells us about a couple people who have changed the entire trajectory of his life.We talk about Adam's upbringing in Philly and and the good, bad, and absolutely unique experience of raising children in Los Angeles. We talk about community and how central it is to living a good life.Adam has a great networking rule that I'm absolutely implementing, and he gives the best metaphor to describe Los Angeles as a place that I think I've ever heard. I had a great time with Adam. I was energized by the way he lives, what matters to him.He loves his life and enjoys his creative pursuits and and his family and community. You'll definitely have a smile on your face listening to the wild adventure that has been Adam's journey.And I think this conversation will motivate you, too. I know it did that for me. Also, please note, we do use some adult language in this episode. Enjoy my conversation with Adam Shapiro.

Let's start with your life before 2020. You had a big before 2020.

Wow. It's hard to remember before the before times.

Yeah, the before time. So take us back to that moment. You know, you're in Covid or you're in Quarantine or Wherever you want to start. Before.

Right before COVID we were living in.Well, we live in la, but we were living in Brooklyn at the time because my wife was shooting a show called Inventing Anna for Netflix, which is a really fun show about that girl from. Came over from Germany. And, you know, I remember it, Billionaires Anna Delvey. And we were shooting that. They shot a couple episodes in Morocco.So I went out to Morocco with. With our baby, with our little one and Katie, and. And we had a great time. And then when we.We heard that, like, you know, there was like a pandemic happening, we're like, well, we gotta get out of Morocco. We gotta go somewhere safe, like Brooklyn. Which ended up being like the epicenter of the pandemic.And then so we flew in and we had our theater company, have a theater company that just turned 19 years old.

Congratulations.

We're in our 19th season. And we had our gala the other night, and we had a gala at that point. And Katie went from Brooklyn to LA for the gala.I stayed back with the baby in New York, and that's when it all kind of went down in March.

Yeah.

And she called and was like, I think you guys should probably come to la. Cause I don't want to get stuck on the other side of the country and they might close the airport.So we just like packed up and went back to LA with our nanny and. And then it was locked down from there and. And that's where sort of a lot of things changed, you know?

Yes. So how old were your kids in lockdown?

Albie was two years old. And. Yeah, we got back to LA. March, whatever, 12th or.

Yeah, mid March.

Right around the time we had to stay in the house. And I remember going to get a COVID test in like, a park up in, like, Northridge. Yeah. Like, it was like a drive through and everyone.

Yeah, yeah.

And I brought my nanny because she was sick. And I was sick too. I. I tested negative, but she tested positive. This is like, you know, right off the bat.And so took her back to her house and got medicine for her and threw him over the fence. And I was just like, we'll see you. I don't know when, you know.

Yeah.

And then I get back and I'm like, katie, Miriam got Covid. I don't. I tested negative and Katie's like, we're pregnant. And I was like, oh, my God. So.So Katie was pregnant the entire, you know, lockdown pandemic.

Yeah.

Which was insane. Yeah. Not. Not great.

Not great.

But, you know, But I had an experience that I feel like a lot of men haven't had, which is I got to spend every waking second for all 10 months of my wife's pregnancy. And I wouldn't suggest it. Wouldn't suggest it to anybody.I feel like pregnant women should have space, and I feel like their partners might want a little bit of space as well. But it was a. It was an experience, that is for sure. And.And she, you know, she went to her first baby appointment, and her doctor was sort of like, we don't know what Covid means to pregnant women. You're the. You're the first crop. You know what I mean? This was.

Yeah.

And so she's like, just don't get coveted, you know? So Katie's like, I'm gonna hang out in the bedroom until the baby comes out, and I'll just see you in like, nine months. And I'm like, great, cool.Yeah, I'll take care. I'll take care of the two year old. You do your thing. And.

And so it's you and Alby against the world, basically.

And Alby. And I'm like, all right, here we go.I'm gonna make, like a little preschool schedule, and I'm just gonna go into teacher mode, camp counselor mode, which is where I'm most comfortable, I think, in life.

Yeah.

And we made a little schedule, and one of the parts of the schedule was cooking class, right? And he loved that. He loved playing in the flour and cracking the eggs and making stuff.And I would show him videos of vacations that Katie and I took before he was born. New Orleans, Peru, wherever, Spain, Italy. And I would tell him what they eat there.And then we would, like, look up the recipe, get the ingredients, and we would make, like, mommy a surprise from, like, you know, we'd make her beignets from New Orleans or, like a pasta dish from Italy. We'd surprise her in the room. And that became sort of an ongoing thing.And I was like, man, I'm spending a ton of time learning how to make all these random dishes. What if I learned how to make the Philadelphia soft pretzel of my childhood, like, of my dreams? And so I just started going down that wormhole.And unlike every other recipe, it wasn't out there, it wasn't online. It's there. There's no. There's no Philly pretzel cookbooks or anything online.There's a lot of comments, you know, under videos, a lot of other pretzels, you know, but there's no, like, recipes and it was just a hard thing to do. So it took me a few months of sort of trial and error trying to make a perfect pretzel.

Yeah.

And then one day I took a batch out of the oven and we brought it to mommy, and she was like, these are amazing. These are great soft pretzels, you know.And then, you know, during the pandemic, you know, whenever Kelly Ripa goes on vacation, my wife gets hired as, like, her replacement on that show. So she hosts the show with Seacrest, or, you know, now it's with Mark Consuelos.

Yeah.

And during the pandemic, those shows were. Were shot live from our living room. I mean, it was just like over zoom. So Seacrest was in his house in Santa Monica.We're in our house in the city of city, and they're doing the show live, you know, national broadcast. And I'm setting up the lights and the camera, and it's like five in the morning and Albie's sleeping, and we're trying to keep it quiet.I mean, it was just a pretty unique, singular pandemic experience. And one of the episodes, Ryan Seacrest just randomly says, hey, Katie, what have you guys been snacking on during your lockdown?And Katie's like, oh, my husband's obsessed with trying to make a Philly pretzel. And I jump on tv, as one does when it's shooting in your living room. Right. And I'm like, yo, Seacrest, I'm bringing you some pretzels tomorrow.So, like, I, like, get pretzels to his assistant, and she gets them to him and he eats them live on the air, national television. And he's like, everybody needs to buy Chappie's pretzels. These are amazing. And I jump back on TV and I'm like, there's no Chappie's pretzels.It's me and a two year old in a pandemic in the lockdown. We can't even leave our house, you know?

Yes.

But when they went and interviewed the celeb, whoever the celebrity was in that episode, I should point that out. It's a good. It would be a good factoid.But yeah, I went in the kitchen and bought shappyprezel.com and got shabby pretzel in Instagram just in case, you know.

Right.

And I made a one page website that just said, yo, your mall's pretzel can go itself shappy pretzels here, you know, and. And it would. And it just led you to my Instagram.And and the shabby pretzel Instagram was just a video of me saying, we're not a real pretzel company. This is like, if we ever become one, you'll be the first to know if you follow us here. And.And really, this was like, in my mind, it was like a big, giant performance art practical joke.

Yes, yes.

And people started DMing me and they're like, how do I get a pretzel? I'm like, I'll make you one. Just, like, drive down the street and I'll throw it over my fence, you know?And Katie's like, you should, like, charge people for the flour. Because you're buying 50 pound sacks of flour and you're making hundreds of pretzels for people. I'm like, for sure, I'll charge people something.And all of a sudden, there was like a line of cars down our street. I'm making pretzels with Albie. He's running the bags down the driveway. People are picking him up.All of a sudden, news comes into our front yard and then another news station, and there's an article written here and an article written there, and people start posting on Instagram that they got the pretzels. And I would write little notes to everybody on every bag. People would take pictures of the note and it just sort of went kind of viral.And all of a sudden, you know, I haven't left my house and I started a pretzel company and now five years later, we're still cooking bacon.

You really, you really are. What was the timing of when you started to. To feel like this is real? Like, like I should change.Yeah, I should change the website or I should, like, claim it, you know, like be a real thing.

I think I'm still trying to grapple with whether or not this is a real thing. Yeah, that's good. But no, I. Honestly, I. There was a.There was this, like, awesome little coffee shop down the street from me here in the Valley that's since closed, which is a bummer. I loved it. But the two women who ran the. The coffee shop, these two Lebanese sisters, Amazing, amazing women.I would go there all the time for breakfast with Aldi, and they. They were allowed to, like, open up for pickup.You remember when the state sort of opened up, like, you could, like, go pick up coffee, you just can't be in there kind of thing.And they said, would you move the pretzel pickup location from your house to our coffee shop so that people come in and then maybe they'll buy coffee? I was like, oh, my. My wife would love that, you know.

Yes.

So we moved the pickup there, and that was sort of the beginning of like, oh, now this is a real thing. This isn't just people coming down my driveway. It's like, I gotta be responsible for their space.And then I had to change things about the website and the way things were ordered. And then I met their. They had these beautiful croissants and baked goods in their coffee shop. I'm like, who makes all these for you?And they're like, oh, it's another Lebanese guy. He's got a huge bread bakery down in El Segundo called Bread Bar la. Yeah. And I was like, could I meet him? And they're like, yeah.So I drive down to El Segundo in, like, the 45 free minutes I have. Because at this point, I was baking pretzels and selling pretzels 23 hours a day. There was like, no time. No time.

Yes.

And. And I went down there and I met him and this.And he was like, we might close, you know, because all we do is make bread for restaurants, and all the restaurants are closed. And I was like, could, like, a couple, maybe a thousand pretzels a day keep somebody employed? He's like, absolutely.You know, So I started going there every morning at, like, five in the morning and teaching them how to make the pretzels. And when I teach people how to make the pretzels, it's like, I show them Rocky. I show them, like, highlights of the Eagles Super Bowl. Like, it's.There's.

You're baking in your roots. It's a very personal thing for me.

You know what I mean? You can't just make the pretzels. You have to understand the pretzels.You have to understand where they came from, why they're like, how they are, why I'm so passionate about them, you know? You know?

Yeah.

And. And so finally about.I would say, two months into that relationship with that bakery, I was able to, like, send them the order and my bakers would make them. And I was. I was out of the bakery and I. And I was like, wow, I can. I. Now. I'm. Now I'm not working in the business. I. I can work on the business.

Yes.

And we started rolling from there.

Is it still. Is it. Are the pretzels still made there?

No. So we moved from.Once everything opened up, they got all their restaurants back, and I very quickly realized we were like, bottom of their priorities.

Yes. Yes. So you had to.

They made it pretty well Known that we came after the 6 billion rolls that were being ordered by, like, restaurants. And so I moved into another bakery on Pico that was owned by Rick Caruso. Rick Caruso had this giant, two floor immaculate bakery.Every bakery I've ever been to is like, it's not dirty, but it's, like, lived in. You know what I mean? Like, bakeries are lived in. There's.

Yeah.

Flour, like, caked onto, like, floors and walls. You know what I mean? It's. They're crazy places. And this place looked like a science lab.And I met this French pastry chef that Caruso, like, flew in from France to work his own bakery. And all this dude did, basically, was make like a croissant for Rick. Like, that's was just like the richest dude ever. Perfect.

Yeah.

And he just made a few croissants for Rick's meetings. And he came and he had a pretzel at one of my pop ups in Santa Monica. And he's like a renowned French pastry chef.And he was like, these are incredible. I've always wanted to learn how to make a pretzel. Would you come to my bakery and show me how? I was like, I would love to.In fact, I'm looking for a new bakery, you know.

Yes.

And so I went with him and I made pretzels with this pastry chef. And he was like, giving me all these tips about things. And there were parts of my recipe that were sort of redundant and didn't need to be.Not the recipe, the process.

Yeah.

You know, because the process sort of built on trial and error. I kept things that didn't need to be kept. You know, I would. I would proof and then press it down.And he's like, what's the point of pressing it down if you've proofed it up, you know?

Yeah.

Like, get rid of that step. That's. That's not needed. And he just made it way more efficient. And we made pretzels there for a couple of years.I went off to Budapest to shoot a TV series for. For stars. And I get a call from him that. That Crusoe's closing the bakery. And I'm like, no. So from Budapest, I have to find a new bakery.

Yeah.

And I find one on Fairfax called Diamond Bakery. Like a really old Jewish bakery, really cool place.And I fly from Hungary back to LA for like, two days just to teach this baker how to make the pretzels. And we're at Diamond Bakery for like a year and a half. That place burns down, unfortunately, and my baker from there, everyone was safe.Happened during the day. And my baker from there got hired one block north, up at Canter's Deli. The famous Cancer's Deli.

Yeah, yeah.

And I was like, juan, take me with you. You know what I mean? And Juan's like, let me introduce you to Mark Cantor. And I met Mark and I told him about the business. He's like, bring it.So we never missed a day of business.

Wow.

Between all the moves, you know?

Yes. Yes.

And I don't know. I don't know what's next. Maybe it's my own bakery.

Yeah.

But I love our situation now.I love that the business is in a place where it's manageable for me normally, but also it's manageable for me when I, like, have to go to Europe to, like, shoot a TV series for a bunch of months and do your other stuff and it doesn't crumble because of that, you know? And now we have, like, an amazing staff, and it's all women. Everybody's on my staff.

Yes. I love it. I love it.

Very organized. I mean, when you have me at the top of this. Right. We need people that don't have add, who are very organized. And so you're smart.

You hire amazing.

Yeah. And then. And then we also have, like, all of our people that do, like, deliveries and caterings and work. Work the card or a lot of my.My friends and actors from our. From my theater company, which is my other little baby, which is now, you know, almost 19 years old.

I want to talk about that, but I want to go back to that moment where you get to get out of the kitchen and run the business. There are some listeners. I tend to help people in the business world around the earlier stages of their business.So, like, hiring the right people, the mission, the website. So talk to my people about. I've heard you tell the story. When I met you. I first met you on a panel at a business.

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

So the story where you. Your initial.

I'm an.

I'm an Eagles fan. I'm going to go with this vibe of I'm Philly. And then having that change of, like, who you really are in terms of the.

You know, it was. It was. I love that story because it's sort of a. It's a combination of two tracks that were going on in my life as an actor.I was really trying to figure out. And it seems cliche, but it's like, who. Who I am.

Yeah.

You know, like, what is it that I bring to to acting. And. And I grew up with a nickname, Shappy. Right. And that's where Shappy comes from. Shapiro.And I got it when I was really little at camp, and I was super homesick. And my. My camp counselors brought me into their bunk and they're like, listen, Adam, you're crying every day. You're super sad. We get it.You miss your parents, you miss your home. But you're here for another three weeks. So starting tomorrow morning, we're going to start calling you Shappy. And Shappy runs this place.Shappy owns this camp. He's friends with the boys, he can talk to the girls. He. He plays sports. He's doing all that. No crying, no homesickness.And when you're homesick and you're feeling it and you want to be Adam, you come over to us in our. In our counselor's cabin and you can. You can cry on our shoulder. But tomorrow morning, Sappy shows up at breakfast. And they gave me this.You know, at the time, I didn't realize, but they gave me this, like, alter ego, this, like.

Yeah.

Superpower where I could almost play a role of just a. Not a three dimensional, sort of dynamic human, but just like a one dimensional.

Yes.

Positive, fun, funny, likable, lovable dude. You know, that's who Sappy was. And that got me through, I think, my entire adolescence and my childhood and college. And, yeah, I booked.I booked 100 national commercials as an actor because, like, who don't. Who don't want Shappy in the commercial?

Yeah.

And then I start talking to my therapist. I'm like, yeah, I. I can't get arrested to do a TV show or a film, and I want to do those.I don't want to just do commercials, you know, I love commercials, but, you know, I want to. I want my heroes do film, you know?

Yeah.

And she said, you know what? Whenever you come in here and you tell stories in therapy, you always say that people are calling you Shappy.Is that what people call you outside the office? I was like, oh, yeah, yeah. And I tell her the whole story. She's like, I wonder if we should unpack that a little bit.

Yeah.

Because maybe Adam Shapiro is the guy who's gonna book the TV shows and the films.You know, maybe understanding who you are and being authentic to that person is gonna make a difference when you go and, you know, because commercials, they just care about what you look for.

Sure. Yeah. Yeah.

You go in and you audition for a movie. They want to see a. Well of a three Dimensional person with feelings and is. That's human.And so for, like, years, we, like, started to unpack, like, what the difference between Shappy and Adam is. And a lot of insecurities came out, and a lot of, like, does anybody like Adam Shapiro? Like, who am I if I'm not just 100% funny all the time?

Yeah.

Entertaining everyone.

Yeah.

Does anybody want that version of me? You know? And I never, like, experimented with that.

Yeah.

And all of a sudden, I started to do that, and all of a sudden my acting career, like, starts. You know, it's like I signed with a new agent, I signed with a new manager. I started dramas, films, TV shows.And now, like, it's been probably 15 years of that.

Yeah.

And I haven't done a commercial since, and I've done, like, 50 dramas, you know, it's wild.

Yeah.

Anyway, so that was kind of an interesting journey. And at the same time, all of a sudden, this pretzel thing comes up, and, you know, whether it's me or whether it's Ryan Seacrest, it gets coined.Gabby Pretzel Company. Well, this is interesting, right? Yeah, this is. It's back. Sappy is back in my life in a big way. Right.And everybody's calling me sappy and Chappie Pimp. Yeah. I tell my therapist this over our zoom, you know, pandemic therapy. I go, yeah, started a pretzel company. And I can believe this, you know?And she's like, what's it called? I'm like, shappy Pretzel Company. She's like, oh, that's interesting.

Yeah.

Maybe this is an avenue for you to, like, be shappy and have that back in your life, because I sort of missed it. Sure.

Yeah.

I felt like I was a little heavy, you know, Like, I would jump to parties and be like, a downer, like, talking about, like, ISIS or whatever.

Yeah.

Everyone's like, hero.

Yeah.

Rent it in a little bit. You're very emotional. But so all of a sudden, I had this shappy thing, and it was awesome. So.And it was, like, boundaried, and I could do both things. And. And. And I start telling her about the company, and I'm like, yo, it's so funny.So what I'm going to do with the marketing of this company is it's going to have the personality of an asshole Philadelphia Eagles fan.

Yeah.

It's going to be like the Soup Nazi for pretzels. People are going to show up and be like, I want a pretzel. And I'm going to be like, fuck You. You know what I mean? And the who. So aggressive.And like, the whole. Everything about the pretzel company was like this personality of this, like. Right.

Yeah.

Which I thought was really funny. And it was really fun to Instagram. And, you know, somebody's like, I want cinnamon sugar on my pretzel. I'm like, fucking, go to Wetzel's.Get out of here. You know, it's down Riverside. Going to the mall. Go to. You want cinnamon sugar, go to the mall. Right.

Yeah.

And I start telling my therapist about this, this, like, sort of behavior of my company, and she's like, I gotta tell you, if it's called Shappy Pretzel and your face is the logo of this company, don't you find it interesting that the personality of the company is polar opposite from your actual personality?

Yeah.

She says, I think the more authentic you make the marketing of this company to who you really are, the easier it's gonna be. I think if you make the personality the opposite of who you are, you're gonna start to run out of ideas really quickly.

Yes.

And I was like, oh, my God, you're so right. Like, it's my face out there and my name. And I'm like, acting like I'm, like, telling.Literally telling people to, like, go fuck themselves, you know, on email. And so I switched it up. And the moment that switch happened, I was like, man, this is the story of the company.

Yes.

This is pure love. This is a hug from home. This. It informed every decision I made for the first, like, two years of the company. Just that little piece, which is.It's going to be authentic to me. Why am I selling pretzels? Because I want people to have a nostalgic, emotional.

Yeah.

Food moment that connects them to their past, wherever that past might be.

Yeah.

It might be mine.It might be Philly, might be the East Coast, New York, but it's going to have a nostalgia, the entire thing that makes people feel like they're getting a hug from home during a time in which they can't get onto a flight and get there. Right.

Yeah.

That. That informed the whole thing.

Yeah.

And it just. It was like, what am I going to write on the bags? Well, I'm going to write that on the bags. What am I going to say on my Instagram post?I'm going to say that on the Instagram post. Why do I care that the pretzels are up to a certain level standard? Because I care that the customer really loves this.

Yes.

That it's. It's more it's not just about the pretzels, about the entire experience. Right.

Yes.

And I don't know, it was just like such a. It was such an interesting thing.And then all of a sudden, I'm like, wow, maybe there isn't that much of a difference between Adam, Shabir and Shappy. Maybe it's.If I could be authentically me, both in my acting and in my personal life, and as a father and as a husband and as the owner of this pretzel company, maybe it's all intertwined, you know?

Yeah.

I mean, I've been producing plays forever. Now I'm producing pretzels. It's the same shit now. The pretzels are the play.But I'm still doing the same marketing, the same web design, the same social media. I'm selling a different product, but it's still something I deeply love and enjoy. It doesn't feel that different.

Yes.

How did you navigate when it was getting bigger and then the world was opening up and you were. I imagine that production was coming back, so you were getting pulled into theater.

Yeah.

Again, tell us about that moment where they're both kind of back on the scene and your kids are a little bit older, so.

Yeah, yeah, exactly. And we had a newborn at that point, you know?And I think, interestingly enough, I think being an actor that doesn't just, like, move to LA and jump off the bus and become a movie star in two seconds.

Right.

You get very used to working multiple jobs at once.

Yeah.

For me, that was, like, not that crazy. Like, when I. Like when my TV show came back on, never have I ever. And I had to go start shooting that.

Yeah.

I was like, all right, now I'm shooting and I'm doing the pretzel thing and I'm doing the theater. Like, it's weird. It's like being an actor really trains you to juggle a lot at once.

Yeah.

And I. I didn't realize in the first, like, 10, 12 years of starting our theater company how much I had taken on in terms of responsibility for that company. I'm like the computer guy over there.

Okay.

I do a lot of acting on that stage, but I don't do the artistic direction. I don't paint the sets. I don't. I'm not, like, working the concession stand. I'm like, yeah.All the graphic design, all the emails, all the marketing, social media, ticket sales, web design, all the video editing, video content, photography, like, that was all me.And every single one of those things I had to learn as we Went like, I didn't know how to edit on Final Cut Pro, but I had to learn because I was the only one in. I am a. Who's, like, gonna do it.

Yes.

Felt comfortable on a computer. And so I didn't realize when I started Chappie Pretzel how much experience I had because people were like, wow, this is your first business.And I'm like, it is maybe my first business as by myself, but I have, like 12 years of experience as being in marketing and a graphic designer and a social media manager.

Yeah.

And I. It really helped.

I'm glad. I'm glad to hear you say that because I. I find so many people overlook what they naturally have been doing, especially moms who are getting back.You know, some of a lot of my listeners are women. And it's like, well, I've never done this. I've never done this. I left the corporate world when my kids were little or when I was pregnant.But there's this whole body of work that we all have just from being. Pursuing what we love and being who we are and having our skills in the world. Like you being an actor.

100%. Being a mom and running a household, that is a company. I mean, that is. That's insane.Any mom who successfully runs their household, I would be thrilled to hire at my company. You know what I mean? So, like, yeah, you know, I look at what my wife does with, you know, holding six things and.And acting and writing a book and running our theater company, and I mean, she's doing everything. And she's also, like, booking the babysitter and making the lunch. I mean, it's shout out to the moms. That's all.

Yes.

Let's go. Thank you.

How did you guys come up with the idea to start. You started it together, right?

You and your wife?

Did you start it with other companies?

Yeah, the theater company. I just started dating Katie.

Okay.

She went to NYU with all these people, and they were all living in la and they were all working at the same restaurant, this restaurant Ammo on Highlands, which was awesome. And she said, yeah, me and my girlfriends are gonna put up a play this summer. That's all we know. You know, we're not film majors.We don't know how to make a short film. What we know is black box, small budget, you know, renegade theater. And I was like, oh, I'll make you guys a website.I mean, you know, you use what you got when you're trying to date this girl. Yeah. If HTML is what you got, that's what you gotta use. I don't have abs. I don't have abs. I'm not a muscular guy. Yeah.So I whipped up a little website for them, and they actually ended up needing another guy in the play. And Katie was like, adam will do it or whatever. So, like, I ended up being in the play.

Yeah.

And this play was God bless our friend that wrote this play. But this play was a. The only way to describe this play would be like a. Like a piece. Piece of shit, Right? It was a piece of shit. And we.And it was very short, like, way shorter than a play should be. And when we did our first, like, real run through of this play on the stage, it clocked in at like 28 minutes.And we were like, oh, my God, we've sold tickets to a play. This is like a skit, you know? And so all the girls were like, listen, we went to NYU with this genius named Leslie Hedlund. She's.She's still in New York.What if we, like, flew her out, she slept on our couch, and she sort of, like, helped doctor this play, make it longer, flesh it out, and redirect it.

Okay.

And we did, and we flew her out, and she's a genius. And she made the play really good. Really good. Wasn't, like, amazing, but it was.A lot of people came to that play were like, wow, I'd love to see more from this ensemble. And we're like, oh, shit, are we an ensemble? Once again, just like the pretzels. There was no intention of making a company.We just wanted to make something cool. And it turned into a company. And I think she said to us, she was like, I love this ensemble of seven actors.I. I have an idea for seven plays based on the seven deadly sins, and I've already written three of them.

Yeah.

Which you guys want to produce all of them. And I'll make sure every. All seven of you have two leading roles and two supporting roles.

Okay.

And then in the other three plays, you'll all, you know, want to do lights, one will do sound, one will direct, whatever. And I was like, have. It sounds like the seven deadly plays to me.

You know?

And she was like, seven deadly plays it is.And so she wrote our first seven plays, two of which went to Broadway, one went to Off Broad or two went to Off Broadway, one became a movie, one became a TV pilot.

That's incredible.

Her career exploded, and as her career rose, so did the theater company with her. And all of a sudden, by the time we were in our, like, Fourth or fifth play in that series. Ayama was, like, rolling.

And you and Katie officially together.

Had you proposed dating? And then we got.

Okay, so you were dating?

You know, we got married 12 years ago, so. But we got married about eight years into the. Into the theater company.

So you did all seven plays together?

We did all seven plays. It took 10 years to get the seventh play. The plays we did in, like, four years.But then Leslie's career blew up so much, she, like, didn't have time to write the seventh play. And she was in New York, and she was making. I mean, she just created the newest Star wars series. Like, she's insane.

That's so cool.

And she's unbelievable. Creative, brilliant writer and director and. And a really good friend of ours and. And a new mom. I'm really excited for her.And she finally wrote the seventh play, Cult of Love. And that play was so unbelievably good. It just went straight from Miami to Broadway.

It's amazing.

Have you seen people's careers launch out.

Of I am a. Oh, yeah. I feel like mine did. I feel like Katie's did. I feel like Leslie's did.Every single person I am that I know, especially from those first few years, went from not working to working after.

I am so cool. Is that a role that you relish, like, mentoring, or at this point in your career, when you see a young actor coming up in a theater group?Do you have that?

I love it so much.

Yeah, it seems like you would.

There's nothing more than. I like. There's nothing I like more than talking to young actors. I went to University of Maryland, which is, like, not a renowned theater school.

Yeah.

By any stretch of the mind. They're getting there, though. They're getting.

Yes.

Good.

They've got you. You're. You're an alumni.

Yeah. But when I was there, it was like, you know.

Yeah.

There was, like, a couple, like, amazing professors, and then it was like, I graduated with a degree in performance, and I was in one play.

Yeah.

Katie graduated with a degree in performance from nyu. Tisch. She was in a hundred plays.

Yeah.

Like, she did everything different scene.

Yeah.

You know, that's the difference between, like, those powerhouse theater schools and, like, I just went to a state school that happened to have a theater department, and. But a couple things came out of that theater department that were unbelievable, and one of which was a mentor that has. Is still my mentor.

Yeah.

I, I. You had to audition for that theater school and to get into the classes, and then if you didn't get into like this one acting class.You couldn't follow through with the acting track and you couldn't graduate with an acting degree. You could maybe do something else, but you have to audition and get in. And I auditioned twice.I couldn't get into this class and I needed to get into this class. So I call my father, who's a professor, 50 years at Temple University, amazing professor, and worked in higher ed, you know, forever.And he's like, oh, I know how college departments work.You need to go to the head of the acting program, knock on his door during office hours, introduce yourself, and really like make a face to face relationship. And I think that'll help, you know, I go, great. I knock on his door, I say, professor. Hey, Bear. Hey. I'm Adam Shapiro.I've auditioned for the theater department a couple times, but I haven't gotten in. And he's like, oh, no, Adam, come on in. Come on and sit down.And he sits me down in the chair and he comes around his desk and he sits on the edge of his desk and he says, adam, acting.

Yeah.

And I'm like, oh, shit, here, this is it. This is what I need. He's going to tell me the secret. He says, acting is not for everybody.But we have scenic design here, we have costume design here. And I'm like, oh my God, this guy's like, you're not an actor. Get out of my office. So I like, I'm like, okay, thank you.And I like walk out and I call my dad on my little Nokia brick.

Oh yeah, I remember them. Yeah.

Just to date. Just to date the situation.

We're in the same lane.

I call my dad on my new, brand new first cell phone I ever had. And I, and I tell him. So I went and I met with the guy you told me to meet with. And he, he told me to leave and never be an actor ever again.And, and he was like, oh, I know, I know who he is. Every college department sort of has a gatekeeper who's like, not the friendliest.And then there's a polar opposite professor somewhere that's like the champion of the student. The person there for the right reasons. The person who really knows that people don't know what they're doing when they get to college.And their job as professors is to teach them that, you know.

Yes.

And he's like, go, just ask any student who that might be. And I, and I find these two girls in the hall, who Sarah Nelson and Lee Caudill. I'll never forget them. They were like the cool senior actresses.And I'm like. I said, who's the professor? That's the opposite. Opposite of this guy, you know? And they said, oh, you gotta meet Scott Reese.Yeah, he's down at the bottom of the theater department in the dark hallway, all the way at the end of the hallway. Go knock on his door and talk to him. So I go. I knock on his door. He invites me, and I go, hey, I was just with Professor A bear.He told me the acting was not for everybody. And he goes, shut the door. Shut the door. And he goes, tell me your story. I tell him the story. He turns around, he starts picking out plays.Neil Simon plays, right? He's like, read Neil Simon. There's a lot of great Jewish roles in Neil Simon. I feel like you could kill Neil Simon. Read these plays.Find the characters you like. We'll find the monologue from one of those characters.We'll work on the monologue for the next semester, and you'll be ready for your audition at the end. At the next semester.

So cool.

And we worked together, and I got it, and I got in. And Scott has been my mentor ever since he officiated my wedding.

Oh, I love that.

And he's incredible. And he actually just retired from Maryland, which is pretty awesome. And.

And how about your dad? He's like the Morgan Freeman character of your life. He's like, dropping down with the wisdom.

He understands, you know? My dad's been in higher ed for a long time, but not just any higher ed. He. He taught at Temple University and at Temple University.The thing he loved about Temple, and I think the reason he stayed at temple for 50 years and never went. Wanted to go down the street to University of Pennsylvania. Ivy.

Right.

You know what I mean? Penn State, the big state school. He wanted to teach at a place where a lot of the students were the first person in their family to go to college.Yeah, he wanted to teach the students that were hungry and were like, I'm here because I need. I need this. Not because, oh, everybody goes to college. And my parents sent me to college. And, you know, he's like, I wanted to teach people who.This was a big deal, you know, really, really big deal. And I wanted to make a difference. And he's. He's the man. He's just an awesome professor.Every time I ever meet anybody from Temple University and they end up. Maybe they're from that program, you know, the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management. I'm like, oh, my dad is Dr. Shapiro and they're like.There's always, like, a pause, and they're like, yeah, your dad dragged me through my graduation. Like, your dad, like, was my favorite professor of all time, and he's just that kind of guy. And. Yeah, my mom, too. My mom's a teacher, too, and.And everyone says the same. Same about her.

Are they both native to Philadelphia?

No, they're Southerners. My dad grew up in South Carolina and North Carolina. My mom grew up in Miami. They met at University of North Carolina.

Okay.

And then my dad got a professorship offer at Temple University, so they moved to Philadelphia. And that's why I'm, like, this crazy Philly guy. But most of my actually is from the South.

Yeah. Will you tell us about the crazy Philly guy part of you? So what does it mean to you when you say.And by the way, also, I want to know, how do your parents feel about feeling this in your blood connection to that?

Yeah, I mean, my parents are really cool. It's funny, because I now that I have my own kids, and they're Los Angelenos and they're not Philly.

Yeah.

And all my Philly boys are like, why does Albie wearing a Dodgers at. I'm like, because I want to do what my dad did for me. My dad let me, like, assimilate into Philadelphia culture.He wasn't like, you're gonna root for, like, the South Carolina sports teams. He's. And I now the Eagles is. That's. I mean, if you've ever met an Eagles fan, there's no. I can't let Alvy root for a different football team.

That's religion, Right.

Judaism and the Eagles. That's on par in my household.

Yeah.

Everything else. He can take the Lakers, the Dodgers, whatever. That was, like, what I decided on. He's a Los Angeleno. Also. How could I deny him LeBron James and.And Shohei?

Oh, Tommy. Yeah.

He's got the two greatest athletes in their respective sports 12 minutes down the road. Not gonna make them root for the Phillies. But, yeah, I. I grew up. I. I loved Philly, and my parents were really. They.They really immersed me in that culture and that city. And I think because my dad worked at Temple, and we were always in the city, and we were always in North Philly, and I loved it. It was just a great.

The culture, the food, people.

The culture, the food.

Where's the best pretzel? Where did you eat your Gappy?

Pretzel is the best pretzel. And I say that. And I say that completely biased. And but also, it's the truth. But no, there's so many.One of the best things about Shabby Pretzel is I become like a lightning rod for all things soft pretzel related in the whole world. There's not that many soft pretzel bakeries in the country. There's.There's one giant chain called Philly Pretzel Factory, which is an awesome pretzel, and they have like 250 locations all over the east coast right now.

Okay.

And it's a great pretzel, and it's really inexpensive, and you can get like a hundred pretzels for, like, 20 bucks. You know, it's knocked out a few mom and pops, though. So there aren't that many mom and pop pretzel shops really left in the Philly area.Yeah, all of the ones that are I've met over Instagram.

Oh, great. Do they embrace you? Are they. Are they?

Very much so. I think it is such a small community that it's not a very competitive community, at least in my mind.Now I'm in la, and I'm the only pretzel pretzel company in la, so I know competition in la, but in Philly, they're all over the place, so I'm sure there's a little bit of competition there.But they, the Philadelphians and the Pennsylvanians, specifically in the southeast Pennsylvania, consume so many pretzels, I doubt that there's much, like, real competition. Like, every neighborhood could have a pretzel bakery. And that pretzel bakery is going to do fine, right?

Yes.

And anyway, I've met them all over Instagram, dm, and last summer I was like, you know what? I would just love to meet all these people in person. I know, like, 30 pretzel bakers and pretzel owners.I would love to just go and Katie's like, fly to Philly and stay there for a couple weeks, rent the car and drive around, you know? So I did. And I went everywhere from the Jersey Shore to Lancaster, and I went to, like, a million pretzel places.And I'm, like, walking in and, like, hugging everybody.

Yeah, I bet you are. Yeah.

And, like. And I'm going in the kitchen and, like, making pretzels with them and learning all their methods.And I sort of filmed the whole thing, and I sold it to Jason Kelsey's Beer Company Garage. Yeah, beer. And they sort of sponsored it, and I made, like, a series out of it, and I would love to, like, make a real series out of it someday.

Like a TV Series that feels like that could be in your future. That's right. That's right in your lane.

But, yeah, everybody's, like, been really hospitable and, like, really, you know, it's fun. I think it's really fun for them to, like, you know, see that the. There's Philly pretzels under every seat at the office.You know, they're like, that's so cool. Who's doing that? You know? And then they see it's me and they see that I'm doing it. Yeah. It's like, I'm not, like, appropriate.

Yeah.

I love this. This is what I grew up with.

Yeah.

It's true to you.

Yeah, for sure.

You have reverence for it. Yeah. I got nothing but love from so many people all over the country, you know, Like, I mean, I was shooting the Bear.We're doing a scene outside in Chicago, and it's me and IO at a Barrie, and we're sort of, like, walking down the street in Chicago. And, you know, the Bear attracts a lot of attention these days, you know?Cause now that the show's a big deal, when we shoot outside in Chicago, there's like, you know, there'll be, like, a little group of. There'll be, like, people watching, you know.

Sure.

So I'm walking down the street, and in the middle of the scene, somebody from the other side of the street goes, shappy Sha. Right? And I'm like, oh, God. They don't know. I'm, like, shooting right now.

Yeah.

You know what I mean? Like, camera was really far away.It's just me walking down the street, and I look over, and it's a guy that owns a pretzel bakery in St. Louis who I've talked to a bunch over DM, and he was just in Chicago on vacation with his family.

Yeah, that's so great.

And I was like, what's up, man? Whatever. I didn't know. I didn't see who it was or whatever. He comes across the street and we've cut, and he's like, hey, from St. Louis, pretzel.And I was like, oh, my God. So I say, hi, whatever. I go, you know what?I don't know how long you're in town for, but I have a buddy who has a bakery here in Chicago, and I'm gonna make some pretzels for the show for Bear. If you're around on Friday, come over to my buddy's bakery. You could try my pretzels. And he was like, we'd love that.We'll Be here, you know, so he came over and I showed him how to make the pretzels, and we shared pretzels and, like, you know, it's just a. It's a very cool community, and it's really fun to. You know, I've always lived, especially as an actor.I feel like I have to have this mindset that to come from a place of plenty and to really. Not just, you know, hope, but to really believe that there's enough for all of us.

Yes.

And that no other actor is my competition, and no other pretzel baker is my competition, and no other theater company is our pretzel, you know, competition. Because the more people make great pretzels, the more people are gonna know that pretzels are delicious.

Yes.

And the more people who are gonna buy pretzels, you know, and so I'm. I have, like, a whole Instagram called Pretzel Magazine that I just shout out other pretzels.

Yeah.

Other pretzel companies. I love it. I love. I think this all started because we were talking about mentorship, really. And I. I just love getting to know people in the business.I love talking to people who are starting their businesses. And because I had such an amazing mentor in college who's still my mentor.And then since I've moved to la, Henry Winkler, specifically has been my mentor and a really good friend and somebody I call all the time and talk to all the time. And he's somebody I want to. He's somebody I want to be. Just, like, on and off screen.

Yes.

Most importantly, off. And so any chance I get, especially, you know, someone's going out from Maryland, you know, they're coming out.Because, you know, when I moved out here, there wasn't one. Nobody from Maryland was out here to talk to. There was not, like, one alumni who was in it.

Yeah.

You know, Diane Wiese, you know, she went to Maryland 30 years before I did.

Yes.

And now there's, like, a group of us out here. There's Natasha Rothwell, who's killing it, and there's just like.There's a bunch of actors out here that are from Maryland that are starting to, like, crack into this business. And anybody who comes out here, I always just tell people, like, let's go get lunch. And I. Yeah. Although I did learn one thing.

Yeah, tell us.

I was. I. My.You know, when you move out to la, it's like everybody and their mother saying, oh, you gotta call my friends, brothers, colleagues, roommate who's a writer out there, you know, And, Yeah, call that Person. And you go, hey, your roommate was my sister's brother's friends. Cousin. And sometimes they're like, okay, cool. When they hang up.And sometimes they're like, oh, let's talk. You know?And I called every single one of those people when I moved out here, and one of those people was like, my grandfather in Miami worked with a guy in the construction business whose son started a production company in la, and he's a film producer.

Okay.

And my grandma was like, you need to call Jeffrey's son. Whatever. So I called this guy. I'm like, hey, you're. It's, like, random, but your dad worked with my. My mom's dad, you know?And, yeah, he's like, I'd love to meet you. He's like, but I'm about to go scout in South Africa for a movie, and then I'm shooting a movie in Europe. Call me in June. And I was like, okay, cool.And I hang up, and I'm like, oh, wow, June. It was August. Yeah, it was August. When I was talking, he's like, yeah. I was like, wow, that guy really punted that ball down the field.I put in my calendar call column in June. I call him. He's like, oh, man, you just missed me. Call me in December. I'm like, done. I'll call you in December. Call him in December.He's like, oh, man. I'm in Albuquerque shooting a movie. When I get back, give me a call. I'm gonna be back in a couple months.I'm like, you're not gonna believe this, but I'm in Albuquerque. I'm calling you from Albuquerque. My wife is on a TV series here or my girlfriend at the time. And I was like, I'm here. And he's like, come to set.So I show up to set. It's Terminator 2. It's like this massive movie, and it's the one where Christian Bale, like, sort of yelled at everybody.Yeah, I got there the next day.

Oh, my gosh.

I got there. I was in the awkwardness of that moment. He yelled at everybody. Then he left and went to London. And then, like, he got arrested. And then.Then they finished the movie later. But I was there the day that he wasn't there. I was like, is Christian Bale here? He's like, we had a little bit of an issue yesterday. He's not here.So I got to hang out with him on set, and because they didn't have Terminator there, they had to do all their B roll.So I got to Watch like explosions and stuff all day and loved meeting this guy and he said to me, I love that you called me in June when I told you to call me. Ten months later, most people, like, you know, so now I kind of have this rule.Somebody comes out to LA and they want to meet with me and they want like, whatever I am down, call me in six months.

It's so good. It's a good rule to have me in six months.

I'll go out with them.

Yes.

But if they don't, they don't have what it takes.

I. Yeah, yeah.

And if, and if they don't last six months in la, then I didn't, you know, like, I didn't want to waste a lunch. You know what I mean? I only have so many lunches. Yeah.

What do you think about, about la? Like, what do you think about adjusting to this place and raising kids here and how have you embraced it?

I love la. I love the town, I love the industry. I really love creative people. I love actors.

Yeah.

When I walk onto a. Like I was. I'm shooting paradise right now, that show on.

We love that show.

Such a good show.

It's doing so well. I feel like everybody I know is watching it.

Yes, it's good, man. I hope I don't ruin it, but.

You won't.

Okay, cool. I was, I was, I went to my costume fitting the other day on the Paramount lot and like, this is 25 years in and why walk onto that Paramount lot?You know? And I see the water tower and I see like the big logo. Like, I still get chills.Like I. Yeah, I'm just such a fan of the industry that I get to work in that it's a very easy thing to love for me. I see what people don't like about la. It's not like I'm oblivious to it.And I, And I see it a little bit more now that I'm trying to look through my kids eyes, you know, Like I, I live in the Valley and the Valley is anything but aesthetically pleasing. Yeah, right. I love the Valley. Everything's really convenient.

Yes.

But you're not like being inspired by like the beauty of Ventura Boulevard and Moorpark, you know what I mean?

It's just like I'm right down the road from you, Adam and I grew up in New Orleans, so I know. Exactly.

New Orleans is gorgeous. It's gorgeous architecture and the river and the boats and the people and the food and the music pouring out of windows. Like, that's not la.That is not la.

Right.

But. But LA has, like, a different kind of beauty, I think, and a different kind of soul. And, you know, like, a lot of cities are. Somebody said this.I forget who. Who said this, but I always. I always resonate with it. A lot of other cities have a lot of motion.You get off the train in New Orleans, you move with the crowd, and you will end up at an amazing place. Right. You get to New York and you come up off out of that subway onto Fifth Avenue, boom. There's like. It's a river.It's gonna pull you towards something amazing. LA is like a flat lake.

Yeah.

And if you come up onto that lake, your boat's just gonna sit there. There's no. No one's telling you where the cool stuff is. No one's showing you which neighborhood you're gonna really like.It's all up to you to explore. Because there's really, like, a thousand different Los Angeles.

Yes.

Silver Lake is completely different than Venice. And Santa Monica is completely different than West Hollywood and Malibu. And downtown couldn't be more different.And the Valley and Beverly Hills and Culver City and Burbank. I mean, there's just so many different LA's, you know?And so when people say, I don't like la, I'm like, you don't even know what you're fucking with. Talking about.

Yeah.

You know?

Yeah.

If you're saying you don't like la, that's imp. You just don't know la.

Yes, you might. Great way to say it.

I don't like Beverly. Yeah, but, like, that's not the only LA there is, you know?

Yeah.It's a great analogy, too, because I always think of when I land at LAX and I come out, no one really cares that you're in la, but when you land in New Orleans, it's immediately like, hey, darling, you go to your mom's house, you know?

Right.

Just immediate like, what? Yeah, like, where's the beer? Yeah.

Right. You're like a little bit on your own.

Yes. You're totally on your own with that.

With that. You. You do lose a little bit of that. Darling, where you headed? And, you know. Philly. Philly. Everyone's talking to each other.Strangers talking to each other. LA is not like that. But. But there is. Once you find your la, it becomes like that for sure.And for sure, raising kids here is, like, a little daunting, to be honest. You know, I'm worried about the school system, I'm worried about safety. I'm worried about protecting their innocence.And childhood, you know, Like, I bike them to school, and on our bike ride, we pass a huge billboard that has, like, 50 scantily clad women, like, advertising a show on. On, like, some network I've never heard of. But it's, like, a little bit, like, it's completely inappropriate.

Yeah, that's. That's a great way to say it.

Maybe. Maybe. I mean, not for me, but for children.

Right? Right.

There's no way in hell any other city would allow a billboard like that to be in a residential neighborhood, let alone the middle of the city, you know, But LA is like that, you know? And my. Like, I remember, like, all those Dying for Sex ads were all over the city.

Yeah.

And, like, I got friends on Dying for Sex. I thought that show was amazing. Inappropriate.

Right.

My. My little girl's like, what's dying for sex? You know? And I'm like, oh, boy, do I get into the. What do I say to this one?

I know all those questions.

The lead count. The lead. The lead character's dying. She's got cancer. So I'll explain that, then I'll explain sex to you. I mean, it's like, L is just a lot.

It's another walk to school. No big deal.

Excited, because this summer, like, we get to, like, spend the whole summer in Vermont.

Oh, good.

It's like the polar opposite. And Katie and I are gonna get to do a play together at a little playhouse there.And they gave us, like, a little house, and the kids are gonna go day camp in Vermont, and parents live in Vermont. So I think, you know, there's. I have family that lives in la.Bill Pullman, the great, great film and theater actor Bill, and my cousin Tamara moved out here in the. In, like, the late 80s, and he, like, became a movie star. And she's a choreographer, and they had kids here.And the kids, all three kids are my favorite kids in the world. I mean, they're all, you know, they're not kids anymore.Masey's got a couple babies, and Lewis is a movie star, and Jack is, like, a ridiculous artist. But one thing I learned from them, raising kids in LA is, like, the day school ends, get out of town.Like, get these kids to put their feet and hands into some soil.

Yeah.

Like, as soon as you can.

Yes.

And that's been really good advice for us. And it's really paid off, I think.

And I love it.

Yeah. I don't know. I'm like, I'm excited, but.But it's also, like, you know, the bad things about L. A Raising kids, I think, is you also have these good things. Like. Like there's this dad at our school who's like the best magician ever.

Yeah.

Justin Williman. He's incredible. He has all these Netflix specials. And he has a magic show on Saturday night. And I got ticked. You know, he hooked us up with tickets.Vip, Bad tickets. And Albie and I are gonna get to go to this magic show.

Yeah.

And he's gonna. He knows the magician and he's gonna see the best show ever. And it's like, what other town?

My husband and I always say that it's like on a Tuesday night. There's so much creativity and talent in this town. You could do anything.

You go.

You go to an open mic night and everyone's talented. Or you go to a concert or pop up concert or like your pop up pretzel. You know, chefs are here and it.

Chef restaurants. I mean, last week we went to a gala for the public council, which was incredible. And Kamala Harris spoke. It was incredible.

Yeah.

And then Rita Moreno was honored. Yeah. And Vin Diesel introduced her. And then Amanda Gorman did a poem.

Yeah.

And we met everybody at the. You know, it was amazing. Amazing night. You know, and Doug am off. I got, you know, see, Doug am off.

There you go.

Shout out, Doug. And then that's my Jewish husband, vice president husband, stay at home, dads or, you know. But I. I think then.Then I left there and we went to our theater company gala, which was amazing. And I did a sing off with Joey McIntyre from New Kids on the Block.

That was.

That was two nights ago. And then last night I'm at a gala and I do. It was like a poetry slam for.For Facing History in Ourselves, which is an amazing national organization that helps teachers teach history and gives teachers resources to teach history and hopefully gives kids history lessons that help them, you know, not repeat our mistakes. And I. I'm a big fan of it. And I had. I played a character I'll never have I ever. Who taught Facing History.

Yes.

And that's why I started working with this company. But I got to do this, like, really cool storytelling thing with the jazz band last night.And, like, the lead singer of the Bengals, like, sang a song.

Yeah.

And then Clint Smith, who wrote like, how the Word Has Passed, like, did poetry before I got up there. I mean, it's like, what city is this? This is a whole week.

Yeah. It's all a celebration of creativity. It's.

I think it is, and I love it.

It's such a beautiful community in that way.

I agree. Will you.

Let's, let's end on this note for people because I met you in this context of the Pretzel Company.

Yeah.

Will you tell us what has surprised you the most and, and like, what you celebrate the most about this entrepreneurial path at the same time as you're doing fatherhood and being married and staying in touch with your roots? Like, what has surprised you about it or delighted you about it, even though it's been a lot at times.

Yeah. I think that's a good. Wow. That's a tough question for me because there's so many things surprised me about.Like, I think part of it is how I think I've been surprised by how difficult it's been.

Yes. Yes.

I didn't realize how many fires you have to put out every day.

Yeah.

I just, you know, it's one. It's like, it's unending, you know, And I think one of. I think that was very surprising to.

Me,.

You know, the acting business. And it goes slow.

Yes.

And so never like, I never like, feel like I have acting career emergencies. You know what I mean? But the Pretzel Company, it's like non stop stuff going on.

Yeah.

Wrong. You got to fix this. You got to do this. You got to gotta, you know, talk to that customer. Oh, we messed that up. We gotta make up for that.And I want to make sure not we don't just make up for it. I want to make sure that we didn't lose a customer for life.Yeah, I want to really make up for it, you know, personally and stuff like that is just like, it's very difficult.And I think one of the things that's been really hard for me to learn, and I think I'm starting to get better at it, is that all that problem solving is the job in.

A lot of ways. Yeah.

It's like, for sure. It's not that things are going wrong necessarily. Yeah. It didn't go as expected or as planned, but that's like running a business.It never really goes according to plan.

Yeah.

And when it does, that's like, oh, that's like, that's like icing on the cake. You're like, wow, that everything went so smoothly, but it just doesn't always go that way.And so the putting out of the fires and the, and the adjusting and the pivoting and all that kind of stuff. Stuff is part of the job. It's like the same with acting. You know, I, I used to get so nervous about auditions because I used to think auditions were.Were job interviews.

Yeah.

If you go on a job interview every day, that's nerve wracking.

Yes, yes.

Right. Because it's like, if I don't get this, I'm unemployed.

Right.

But that's a terrible mindset, and it's not true. An audition is not a job interview. It is. It's a sales call. It's a. It's somebody walking into my store. Right.

Yeah.

Somebody comes in and says, hey, I want a pretzel with jalapeno and cheese. I don't have that. Right.

Yeah.

They could go to Wetzels and get that. Does that mean now I'm unemployed? Does that mean chappie pretzel ceases to exist?I don't have a job at the bakery, you know, that's, you know, of course I do. And so when I don't. When I audition for something and I don't get it, that doesn't mean now I'm. I'm jobless. My job is to audition.

Yes.

Especially when you're starting.

Yeah.

You know, eventually you come like my cousin, Bill Pullman, and he's not auditioning. He's getting offers and he's doing that, and his job becomes about choosing. It's a lot of choices. Do I do this movie or do that. Do that movie?Is this a good decision? Is that. Yeah, for me, a lot of my job is auditioning. You know, that's not a job interview. That is the job.And so I've had to, like, figure that out with Shappy Pretzels and really, like, start to not take everything so personally and have so much stress around things going wrong. Really. That is the job. That's part of being the leader of a company. Is that you.

It's a great.

Yeah, yeah.You have to fix things as they go, and you have to do it smoothly and not super stressed out and don't get everybody else really stressed out about it. And once I realized that's part of that. The job.

Yeah.

Everything became a lot less stressful because.

Yes.

Those first six months to maybe two years of the job, I took everything so personally.

Yeah.

Easy to think that you're inadequate. I mean, I even feel that, like, that just about our emotional lives because I work in that lane as a life coach.So it's like, you know, we're judging ourselves for feeling a certain way or we haven't figured this out or how did I. I thought I got through this, you know, five years ago, and now this thing is up again emotionally. So I Think just to realize that is part of the deal. Like, it's part of being human.

Yeah. Like, that imposter syndrome is really hard. The first time I was, like, actually, like, meeting a chef and, like, talking.Like, I went into the bakery to meet those bakers, and I'm like, you guys do whatever you want. I don't know how to make pretzels. You know what I mean?And they had to be like, no, you're the only one who knows how to make this pretzels, and you need to tell us how to make it. Yeah, I know you're not feeling like. You're feeling like an imposter here, because you've never been in a bakery before, but like, this.But you do know what you're doing, at least with this one thing, and we need you to tell us. And it is that imposter syndrome is real. And that sort of feeling inadequate.I remember the bear used to give me, you know, the scripts the night before every episode, which was, like, interesting, but whatever. I would have liked them a few days before so I could work on it. But, you know, they're very secretive show.They don't like emailing the scripts out too early, whatever. So I find out the night before I'm shooting that I'm working with Olivia Colman. This is my favorite actress. This is my favorite actress in the world.Olivia Colman is the queen. I immediately have this sense of dread, of imposter syndrome. I'm like, this is crazy.And I'm like, I need to figure this shit out because it's tomorrow morning, and I can't be showing up to set feeling this way. So I just go straight to the top. I text Bradley Cooper.

Yes.

I'll drop that name.

Yeah, well, that doesn't surprise us.

It's a Philly guy. Yeah, that name. I don't mind dropping that name. That's. That's the best dude ever.

Yeah.

So I text Bradley Cooper and I say, brad, you're not gonna believe this. I'm in Chicago. I'm back in Chicago. I'm doing a scene with Olivia Colman tomorrow, and I'm feeling major imposter syndrome.And I don't get a text back from a little while. Hour later, I get a text saying, the only imposter is the syndrome itself.

Yeah.

He says, the only thing that does not belong on that set tomorrow is you feeling like you're an imposter. That the syndrome. That's the only thing that you. You should be there.You're there for a Reason, he says, I guarantee you they weren't just saying, let's just hire anybody to work with Olivia Colman tomorrow. Yeah, you're there because they put you there, and she's there because they put her there.And you're in the same place tomorrow for the same reason, and you should be there. And you're enough. And I was just like, come on, let's go, let's go.

Those Philly people, they really know how to bring it home.

People also tell you not enough real quick.

Right? So you can believe him.

Yeah, yeah, you can believe him.

He's telling you the truth. You did great on the bear. We love the bear. And we loved your performance on the bear.

I was just. Just thrilled to be a part of that show. And. And, you know, it felt like life imitating art imitating life.You know, when I showed up to that show, the first episode I was on, Chris said. I said to Chris Store, who created the show, I said, man, thank you, man. I audition for everything.I never just get a phone call out of the blue, come be on our show. He's like, well, we're just, like, so obsessed with the pretzel thing, we had to get you in here.

And I was like, oh, my gosh.

The pretzel thing.

Oh, my. Yeah, I did not think you were going to say that.

And so then when I showed up for my next episode, and they were like, hey, by the way, your character is going to be called Adam Shapiro. I was like, but that. That's my name.

Yeah.

And they're like, yeah, Chef, you're. You. You're. You're Adam Shapiro. I'm like, all right. Just like, don't make me, like, a racist. You know what I mean?A lot of responsibility in your hands, guys. Yeah. If I'm Adam Shapiro, the Google results are all going to be the same. You know, whatever I do on this show is going to be.

Yeah.

Google result when you type in my name.

Yeah.

And I was thrilled to do it and thrilled to, you know, represent the Adam Shapiro's of the world. I heard from one on Instagram today, very psyched about the bear. And there's a lot of us out there.And, yeah, I was just thrilled to be a part of that show. But it really was an extension of the pretzels, and a lot of times, acting. The. The pretzels are an extension of the acting.I went and did a couple episodes of Lincoln Lawyer this year.

Yeah.

And while I'm there, everyone's asking me about the. The pretzels you gotta try this guy's pretzels. Everybody in Hollywood has had these pretzels because I. I said the picket lines.

Yes.

Yeah. So between the writers and the actors strike and how everyone. Those strikes lasted, I think, like 20 years. I think it was 20 years, 25 years.Those strikes, something like that felt like. Yeah, it did feel like I, I brought like hundreds, thousands of pretzels. And so everyone's had them.So I show up at Lincoln Lawrence, everyone's telling everybody about the pretzels, and of course they order them. And they order them for a day I wasn't shooting. So I shot Wednesday.Thursday I catered the set, and Friday I came back and shot my next scene, you know, and for me, it's all. That's three days of work. Doesn't matter if it's the acting or the pretzels. It's all. It's all one company, you know, it's all me.

Well, I love that I've gotten this time with you because I have twin girls who are finishing their freshman year of college and they are total foodies, both of them.

Tell them I say, what's up?

They're going to be home in like five days. I told them one's a Tulane in New Orleans, so that makes my very.

Happy experience your New Orleans. Oh, that's cool.

And the other one's down in San Diego. San Diego State.

Oh, San Diego State.

Yeah.

Very cool.

So we're gonna be eating pretzels. I haven't had a pretzel yet. I told them I was talking to you. We all watch the bear. Let's do this. I am ordering the pretzels.Yes, for them this summer. We are all gonna have them. We'll be by our pool. I'm right down the road for you from you in the Valley.So, you know, our life is like chill in the Valley all summer long. And I. I'm so excited. And I have just loved. I loved hearing your story initially, you know, when you were on a panel with your wife.You guys have a great vibe together. You're doing such good work in this city and so community oriented.And so to have you for this hour and bring your story to my listeners, I'm just so grateful.

It's my pleasure. It's an honor to be on your podcast and an honor to know you.And I gotta go to the bakery and make 250 pretzels for the Greek tonight for Seth Rogen Live.

There you go. They're in demand.

And then I have to run doing all this.

You're right where you're supposed to be. You're right where you're supposed to be.

Being with Adam for this hour reminded me of that famous Oscar Wilde quote, be yourself, everyone else is already taken. Adam is one of one.And when he started to embrace the various aspects of himself, when he decided that all of who he is gets to belong, Adam is happy. Shappy as Adam. That's when his life expanded. You are one of one, too. It takes a lot of energy for us to wear our masks, and we all do it.We learn from a young age to be a certain way in one situation and then change and be a different person in a different situation. We do this to figure out who we are and find our place in the world. But as adults, we've had enough experience to have a true sense of self.If we're paying attention, we know our values. And over time, we run out of the energy to be anything other than who we are.I think it's designed like this on purpose because we're supposed to be authentically who we are regardless of the situation. Authenticity is efficient and we need courage to sustain it. Adam is living proof of the joy and vitality on the other side of choosing authenticity.It's easier to get excited about life when you bring exactly who you are to all aspects of your life. Of course, it's a risk to be yourself. We're all vulnerable to rejection and judgment.But I believe Adam when he says, one decision to be authentic changes everything. And I'm going to add, it can change everything for the better.So I invite you decide where you could be more authentic in your life and see what happens when you show up as your whole self in that area, in all areas. Lastly, I'm holding extra tight to these two ideas from Adam.Number one, the next time you feel like the imposter, remember that the feeling of being an imposter is the only imposter. The truth is that you being you is enough to deserve the opportunities that come your way.You get to decide that you're at the table, in the room, on the set, wherever it is you want it to be, you're there for a very good reason. And number two, all of the problem solving is the job. I love this perspective so much. And it's not just about work. It's about life.We're humans and we're going to find things problematic, but we often get more stressed than we need to be. I do this all the time. To hear Adam reframe it was inspiring. Facing the challenges in our life is not this other part of life that's problematic.When we're problem solving, we're not off track or inadequate or unsuccessful. We're just living. We're having an experience. It's not personal. It's not right or wrong. It's just an experience that is life right now.When we open it up like that, we remove the judgment and the shame and that gives us back some energy. That's the energy we need for enjoyment and purpose. Thank you, Adam. You bring connection and laughter wherever you go, because that is who you are.And I'm so grateful you decided to come here and share your story with us. The girls are home for the summer and we've been poolside with Shabby Pretzels. And as I anticipated, they do not disappoint.We appreciated every bite of home that is baked into the shabby deliciousness and we got to make our own memories enjoying the food together in our backyard, which is our favorite spot in la. So well done, Adam. Your love for connecting with others and creating connection between people is a gift we fully received and we are grateful.I encourage you all to have a taste of Shappy Pretzels wherever you live. We put the link in the show notes and I am confident that you'll be glad you did. Okay, that's it for now. I'll meet you here again soon.Thanks to each of you for being here and for listening. I'm so grateful we get to share life in this way. As always, full show notes are available@paigenolan.com podcast.There you will find a full summary of the episode, timestamps and key takeaways, and any resources mentioned in our conversation. If you enjoyed this episode, I'd love if you would leave me a rating and a review.You can do that by visiting pagenoland.com love your reviews, really do help people.

To discover the show.

And if you know someone specifically who would enjoy this episode, I'm so grateful to have you all share. I'll meet you there with your friends.Lastly, if you have any questions or comments, or if you would like to share any feedback with me, please email to meetme thereagenolan.com I would love to hear from you. Thank you to the team that makes this show possible.Podcast production and Marketing by North Node Podcast Network Music by Boyd McDonnell Cover photography by Ennis Casey okay y', all, that's it for now. I'll meet you there again soon.

Sam.